The Trail

The Ascent

If you’re looking for a proper mountain bike adventure, in a pretty wild and remote corner of the Alps, then this one is for you. To be honest, the ascent to the Col d’Anterne can be done more efficiently using one of the variations below, especially if you have an e-bike. But this version, starting and ending in Le Lignon, Sixt-Fer-a-Cheval, feels like a real adventure, takes in some fantastic scenery, as well as two refuges for mid-ride refueling and end of ride beers.

The Ascent

There’s not much of a warm up on this one, from Le Lignon you’re straight into a fairly steep push-fest – firstly a 4×4 track, then onto singletrack with plenty of borderline push/carry sections. After a mightily impressive waterfall, take a left signposted for the Refuge Alfred Wills, and things level out a bit. The trail carries on up towards a giant pylon which marks the end of the worst part of the uphill! From the pylon, there’s a short descent – just long enough to have fun, and recharge motivation levels, but not long enough to loose to much vertical. The next section has a fair amount of pedalling to the Refuge Alfred Wills, where food and caffeine await! After the refuge is a pretty physical section that takes you towards the Lac d’Anterne, all fairly physical pushing with the odd section of carrying. Good news, the worst of the suffering is over! A quick descent and you’ll be pedalling your way past Lac d’Anterene, and at 2063m, with the backdrop of the mighty cliffs of the Chaîne des Fiz, it’s a hell of a place for a swim! Beyond the lake, there’s a short. steep push which is also the only technical section on the descent, so get your lines sorted out. After that, it’s fairly straightforward before a champagne welcome on the Col d’Anterne.

The Descent

Straight off the top, there’s a fair amount of loose rock and shale, but that quickly turns into flat out, smooth dirt. Other than the obvious technical section before the lake, there’s nothing to worry about. It’s short and consists of a few awkward rock steps and then a narrow section with shale where you really need to know the line. After that, a quick pedal back along the lake, and then a short climb following the trail up to the right. It quickly levels off and you’re off like a rocket all the way to the Petit Col’Anterne. There’s nothing particularly technical in this section, just flat out, flowy fun, just watched out for the small drops lower down caused by water which could easily ruin your day! You’ll definitely want to stop at the col for photos of chaotic west face of Mont Buet. Back on the trail, there’s quite a bit of loose rock initially, but for the most part it’s flowing, endless trail, relatively smooth and without much technicality. Eventually, after what seems like hours of descending, you’ll arrive at the Refuge des Fonts, located in the beautiful Cirque des Fonts. A great place for a beer! A fairly long section of 4×4 track is next, but as 4×4 go, it’s a bloody fun one! Watch out for a signposted trail on the left, that’s yours! That’ll take you into a festival of roots! It’s a short section, and it’s not steep, but it’s pretty intense in the wet. Over the river a short 4×4 track climb joins a tarmac road leading you back to the parking area.

Variations

Ascent via Refuge des Fonts – Essentially, this is climbing and descending via the descent trail as described above. It’s definitely more efficient, and you’ll be able to pedal a large amount of the ascent. If you’ve got an e-bike, this is the variation for you. If you’ve got the gas for it, I still think the loop described above is the best option.

Plaine Joux start – Starting from Plaine Joux above Passy is definitely an option. The climb towards Refuge de Moede Anterne is on a decent 4×4 track, with a steep push from the refuge up onto the Col d’Anterne (total climb around 850m total). After that, follow the descent as described above. The issue with this variant is obviously getting back to the car in Passy…